Interview Question: How could you have improved your career progress?

Answering this question requires a lot of preparation. Thus, it is vital to reflect on your career to-date to know how to answer the question professionally.

Success cannot be attained within a day or two. If you’re focused on progress, as you go day by day, you’ll notice yourself changing for the better (or the worse, depending on your performance). Strive to grow on a daily basis if you want to survive in the fast-changing working world.

Your flaws, and improvements, are vital to your career progress. That is why it is important not to be satisfied with your actions and performance. Once you think you’re good enough, progress stops.

Learn how to acknowledge your mistakes — these mold and shape you for the better. Planning to improve your career is also a given. Learning how to correct yourself at work is also needed.

In order to progress in your career, have dedication and passion towards it. The willingness to gain new knowledge and skills is important because success depends on hard work, determination and your attitude.

So if you hear this question during the interview, make sure to focus on the fact that achieving success is not an overnight thing.

If you want to improve your progress, strive to have a target for every task you do. Achieving bigger goals requires you to break them into smaller pieces. Be willing to learn from your flaws and mistakes and acknowledge them. Doing this helps you become a better employee for the company and a great example to your colleagues at the same time.

Keep in mind that being satisfied with where you are is a downfall, especially if you know you can do more.

If you have any regrets, do something about them to avoid making the same mistakes all over again.

Don’t dwell in the past, remember that tomorrow is a new day and the future is all up to you.

Alan is the creator of Interview Success Formula, a training program that has helped more than 40,000 job seekers to ace their interviews and land the jobs they deserve. Interviewers love asking curveball questions to weed out job seekers. But the truth is, most of these questions are asking about a few key areas. Learn more about how to outsmart tough interviewers by watching this video.